Kurnool: Finance minister Buggana Rajendranath has said the AP government is setting up new industries on a large scale and encouraging modern technology to ensure that pollution is less.
“The pollution control board has identified the red, orange and green categories. If rules are violated, stern action will be taken, he warned.
The minister was inaugurating the new zonal office of the AP Pollution Control Board and laboratory building, constructed at a cost of Rs 16.93 crore, at the Labour Colony in Kurnool city on Tuesday.
He said the Kurnool Municipal Corporation has allocated 1,213 square yards of land in the Labour Colony, near the Venkataramana Colony, to the state pollution control board. Under its supervision, the state police housing corporation has completed the structure. The building has been named Dr. YSR Paryavarana Bhavan.
“If the state is to develop, industries are very necessary, but it is imperative to control pollution. A sewage cleaning plant would be set up with a fund of Rs 124 crore near Joharapuram in Kurnool town. We would set up pipelines from Sunkesula to Kurnool city with an allocation of Rs 80 crore to ensure supply of clean water and prevent use of contaminated drinking water,” the minister said.
Kurnool MP, Dr S. Sanjeev Kumar, highlighted the urgency of making India pollution-free by the year 2030. “ India's pollution levels are ten times higher than the standards set by the WHO. We have a collective responsibility to address this issue.”
He also stressed the importance of ensuring that industrial areas in the vicinity of Kurnool maintain low pollution levels.
Nandyal MP Pocha Brahmananda Reddy, Panyam MLA Rambhupal Reddy, Kurnool legislator Hafeez Khan, city mayor Ramaiah, ZP chairman Papireddy, MLC Issac Basha, pollution control board member secretary Sridhar, district collector Srujana and others participated in the event.
